User:Bolverkrr/sandbox

Sigurd and his foster family

Hjordis gives birth to Sigurd, who is strong, brave, and very popular. She then marries the King’s son Alf, and Regin, the son of King Hreidmar, educates Sigurd. Sigurd enters the forest looking for a horse and meets Odin, who gives him Grani, who is descended from Sleipnir, and better than any other horse. Regin entices Sigurd to go after the dragon Fafnir so he can become rich.

Then Regin tells Sigurd a story: His father Hreidmar had three sons: himself, Otr, and Fafnir. Otr was an otter-like fisherman, Fafnir large and fierce, and Regin himself was skilled with ironwork. One day Odin, Loki and Hœnir are fishing and kill Otr in his otter shape, skin and eat him. King Hreidmar finds out and demands they fill and cover the skin with gold. Loki goes out and takes the dwarf Andvari’s gold and the ransom is paid. The dwarf curses the ring Andvaranaut ("Andvari's gift"), saying it will bring death to anyone who owns it. Fafnir later kills his father, hides the body, and takes all the treasure (and ring) to his hoard. He turns into an evil dragon, and Regin became a smith for the king.

Regin makes two swords one after another for Sigurd, but they break when he tests them. Sigurd’s mother gives him the pieces of his father’s broken sword and Regin reforges Gram. Sigurd tests it and splits the iron anvil down to its base, and promises to kill Fafnir after he avenges his father. First he goes to the soothsayer Gripir and asks about his fate. Gripir tells him after some hesitation, and Sigurd returns to Regin, saying he must avenge his father and other kinsmen before he kills Fafnir. Sigurd sails to Hunding’s kingdom and kills many and burns settlements. A brutal battle ensues between him and King Lyngvi and Hunding’s sons, and Sigurd kills them all with Gram. He returns to Regin to prepare to meet Fafnir.

Sigurd goes to Fafnir’s territory and digs a ditch to hide in and stab Fafnir from. Odin comes and advises him to dig several ditches for the blood to flow into. He does so, and stabs Fafnir through the heart as he crawls over the ditch. As Fafnir is dying, he asks Sigurd about his lineage and says that his gold and Regin will be Sigurd’s death. Sigurd returns to Regin, who was hiding in the heather during Fafnir's slaying. Regin drinks Fafnir’s blood and asks Sigurd to roast Fafnir’s heart and let him eat it. Sigurd tests whether the heart is fully cooked and licks his finger, and suddenly understands the speech of birds. He overhears the nuthatches talking to each other about Regin’s plan to kill him, and that he should rather eat the heart himself, kill Regin, take the gold, and go to Brynhild. Sigurd kills Regin, eats some of the heart, takes as much treasure as he can carry, including the Helm of Terror, and Andvaranaut, and rides off on Grani.

Sigurd rides to the land of the Franks and finds a sleeping warrior. He removes the helmet, discovers it is a woman, and cuts her chainmail open. She wakes and tells him Odin stabbed her with a sleeping thorn and mandated that she must marry, but she refuses to marry any man who knows fear. Brynhild gives him beer and recites a poem about how to use different magical runes. Following this, Brynhild gives Sigurd several pieces of sound advice on how to navigate society and survive, and they agree to marry each other.

Sigurd and the Gjukingar

Sigurd rides to the estate of Heimr. Heimr is married to Brekkhild, Brynhild's sister. Sigurd catches sight of Brynhild weaving a golden tapestry in the castle. Alsvid tells him to not think about women, but after Brynhild saying they are not fated to be together, they renew their vows.

King Gjuki is married to Grimhild, who is skilled in magic, and their sons are Gunnar, Hogni, and Guttorm. Their sister Gudrun has a dream about a golden hawk, which Brynhild interprets as her future husband. They then talk of Sigurd's excellence and the prophecies about him before his birth. Then Gudrun has a dream about a handsome stag, which Brynhild interprets as Sigurd, and prophecises she will marry, but soon lose Sigurd, marry Atli (Attila the Hun), lose her brothers, and then kill Atli.

Sigurd comes to Gjuki with Grani and all his treasure. Grimhild gives him a drink and he forgets about Brynhild. Gunnar and the others swear brotherhood with Sigurd, and he marries Gudrun. Gudrun eats some of the dragon's heart, and bears Sigurd a son, Sigmund. Meanwhile, Grimhild encourages Gunnar to marry Brynhild. Sigurd and the three brothers ride to King Budli for Gunnar to ask for Brynhild's hand. She is inside a hall surrounded by fire. Sigurd and Gunnar exchange shapes, and Sigurd goes and asks Brynhild to marry him as Gunnar. Brynhild reluctantly agrees because of her oath, and leaves her daughter Aslaug by Sigurd to be raised with Heimr.

Brynhild and Gudrun are arguing about whose husband is better, and Gudrun shows her the ring which Brynhild had given Sigurd. Brynhild recognizes the ring and realizes she has been tricked. She tells Gunnar she knows he deceived her and that she will kill him and seek revenge on Grimhild. Brynhild takes to her room and Sigurd comes to try to make amends by asking her to marry him, but she doesn't accept his offer, and instead wants to die and bring doom upon everyone involved.

Gunnar consults with his brothers whether they should kill Sigurd to keep Brynhild or not. They decide to give snake and wolf's meat to Guttorm to turn him violent and kill Sigurd. He goes into Sigurd's bed chamber and stabs him while asleep. Sigurd wakes up and before dying, throws Gram after him as he leaves, cutting him in two. Brynhild laughs when she hears Gudrun sobbing, Gudrun tells Gunnar he made a big mistake by killing Sigurd. Brynhild also tells Gunnar he has made a mistake and stabs herself and before she dies, foretells the rest of Gunnar's and Gudrun's future. Gunnar fulfills Brynhild's last request, that he put her on a bonfire with Sigurd, Guttorm, and Sigurd’s 3-year old son.

Gudrun and the Budlingar

Everyone mourns Sigurd’s death and Gudrun runs away, ending up with King Half in Denmark. Grimhild finds Gudrun and orders her to marry King Atli against her will, which she does, unhappily. Atli has a dream that he is fed his children, and Gudrun interprets it that his sons will die and many other bad things. Gudrun sends her brothers a runic message warning them about Atli, but the messenger Vingi alters it, inviting her brothers to come. Hogni’s wife Kostbera sees the message is false and tells him. Kostbera tells her dream to Hogni, in which she predicts the treachery of Atli, and Hogni’s death, but he doesn’t believe her. Gunnar’ wife Glaumvor also has symbolic dreams predicting Gunnar’s betrayal by Atli and his death, and he eventually gives up trying to interpret them differently, and says he will probably have a short life. Gunnar and Hogni go with Vingi to Atli. Vingi reveals he betrayed them, and Gunnar and Hogni kill him with their axe handles.

Atli says he wants Sigurd's gold and will avenge Sigurd by killing his brothers-in-law. Gudrun tries to stop the fighting, but then puts on armor, picks up a sword and fights with her brothers. Many of Atli's champions are killed. Of their army, only Gunnar and Hogni survive and are captured. Hogni's heart is cut out and shown to Gunnar. Gunnar is placed in a snake pit and Gudrun brings him a harp which he plays with his toes. All the snakes fall asleep except one, which bites his heart and kills him.

Gudrun and Atli hold a funeral feast. Gudrun kills Atli's two sons, and gives their blood and hearts to Atli to eat and drink. Atli says she deserves to be killed. Hogni's son Niflung wants to avenge his father, so he and Gudrun stab Atli while he is asleep. After he dies, Gudrun sets the hall on fire and all Atli's retainers die while fighting each other in panic.

Gudrun's last marriage

Gudrun and Sigurd's daughter is Svanhild, radiantly beautiful. Gudrun goes to the sea to drown herself, but gets swept away and to the court of King Jonakr, who marries her. They have three sons: Hamdir, Sorli, and Erp, and Svanhild is raised with them.

King Jormunrek wants to marry Svanhild, but Bikki convinces Jormunrek's son Randver that he would be a better match for her than his father, so he and Svanhild get together. Upon Bikki's advice, Jormunrek hangs Randver and has horses trample Svanhild to death.

Gudrun encourages her sons to kill Jormunrek and avenge Svanhild. Gudrun's sons ask Erp if he will help them kill Jormunrek, but he gives an ambivalent answer, so they kill him, but regret it afterwards. They meet Jormunrek and cut off his hands and feet, but then Odin shows up and tells Jormunrek to have them killed with stones, which they do.

External Links

• Auðunar þáttr vestfirzka from heimskringla.no